Auto giant to set up Chery factory in Sakarya

Mermerler Otomotiv will manufacture cars for Chery in the Marmara province of Sakarya. DHA photo

Mermerler Otomotiv will manufacture cars for China's Chery in the Marmara province of Sakarya, the company’s general manager said Thursday, adding that the project would begin before the end of the year.

“We will produce three models of Chery in Turkey. One of them will be light commercial vehicle and the other two will be models called Niche and Change,” Murat Mermer said. “Chery uses German technology in all of its vehicles, but the labor force is from China. We will actualize the production as a Turkish-Chinese collaboration by using German technology.”

Speaking to Anatolia News Agency, Mermer said the area they were planning to build the factory on was registered as a "meadow" in government records. Its formal registry thus caused regulation problems for the company even though the land has "long since ceased to be a feeding ground for livestock."

“We have been delayed for two months so far. However, we are speeding up the work to make up for the lost time. We predict that we will start the project before the end of the year,” Mermer said.

He also said that in addition to the factory, the project involved the establishment of a social facility, including a hotel group and a shopping mall. Mermer added they undertook almost a $500-million-investment. “Some $120 million of this figure is allocated for the construction of social facilities,” he said.

The investment will provide employment for 3,000 people over five years, according to figures provided by Mermer. “Some 890 of these people will be white-collar. And when we consider this together with the employment provided by the supplier industry, the number of jobs created may rise to 10,000.”

Mermer also said that in August 2012, the first vehicle manufactured in Turkey will be launched to the market, adding that the annual production capacity of the factory would be 20,000 units in the first year and 100,000 by the end of the fifth year.